Substitute Bride; My Husband's Mistakes

(Celine's POV) It was Friday night. I was in my room, preparing for bed, when my door swung open. “Celine, you have to take your sister’s place tomorrow,” my father, Mr. Morris Mason, said as he walked into my room with my mother. “Dad, I don’t understand. Why do I have to take Clara’s place tomorrow? Where is she?” I asked. I knew that Clara had gone to her bridal shower. How could she just flee on the eve of her wedding? “Something came up, according to Clara, and she had to take care of it,” my father said. I sighed, standing in my bedroom. I hadn’t attended the extravagant bridal shower of my twin sister, Clara Mason. Clara and I were identical twins. We were both twenty-five years old. I knew that many of Clara’s friends said I was jealous of my twin sister because she was getting married before me. But that wasn’t true. I was in a relationship with Martin Enzo, a construction worker. But Martin wasn’t the type of groom my father wanted, so he had rejected him. Everyone was proud of my twin sister. She was the apple of everyone’s eye—even our older brother, Luca. But I was the opposite. I owned a bakery shop in this part of the city. Last month, I had pleaded with my parents to let me marry Martin. But my father had plainly refused, saying that only a rich man was allowed to marry me. Despite my pleading, my parents had forbidden me from getting married and chased Martin and his uncles away after they came to ask for my hand. Because of that incident, I had refused to attend my sister’s engagement party or her bridal shower. Now she had disappeared and wanted me to take her place on her wedding day. “How can Clara just disappear without explaining her reason to her manager—that she’s getting married to a wealthy man, the groom you all wanted?” I queried my father, who stood in my doorway with my mother. My father had dark skin, while my mother was fair, like my twin sister and me. We were her exact replicas. “Celine, I know you’re finding this hard to believe. But Clara said she had worked so hard to be among those selected for the Stars Award, and she couldn’t miss the modeling shoot. Please—you’re her twin sister, and Jace Augustus will never find out,” my mother begged me. I looked at her face in horror. “Mom, I can’t do it. You and Dad need to order Clara to come back right now. Where’s my phone?” I moved back to my drawer, grabbing my phone. I contacted my sister; she owed me an explanation for this sudden disappearance. How could she expect me to stand in for her on her wedding day? Was she crazy? I had stood in for Clara many times, and many people wouldn’t know I wasn’t her. The worst part was that her fans visited my shop, took photos of me, and tagged me as Clara. But I wasn’t my sister. Damn it. “Clara!” My angry voice boomed over the phone as soon as she answered. “Hey, Celine. I’m sorry I took so long to call you. Please, can you stand in for me tomorrow? Please, please, sister,” Clara begged in her sweet, seductive voice that always rendered me speechless. I was ready to do anything for this crazy sister of mine—just to make her happy and help her achieve her dream as a top model. “Clara, I don’t think I can do this. How do you expect me to stand in for you? Wait—during the wedding, the priest will ask you to exchange vows and kiss. How can you trade your wedding day for business?” I couldn’t understand my sister, so I needed an explanation. “Celine, I wish I could explain this to you, but my phone battery is about to run down. Please—after this one, I won’t ask you to stand in for me again. Please, please,” Clara begged once more, rendering me speechless. “Are you saying that I should kiss your groom? What if he finds out I’m not you? You know I’m not as talkative as you, and I’m not that close to him. Did you already tell him I’m not you?” I asked, wanting better clarification. I knew Jace and I weren’t close. I knew that Jace was my sister’s fiancé. He showed her off to his friends and other politicians. My sister was a very popular person, with more than ten million followers online. “No, Celine. Please, do not tell Jace that I’m not you. You have to act as me and pretend that you are me. You know how I behave, so mimic me very well,” Clara said, and I sighed heavily. “This is too risky. What if Jace finds out and locks me up? What do I tell him? You have to explain to him so that we don’t kiss—or even think of me as you. I don’t like your fiancé, and I can’t stand in for you. I’m sorry.” I wanted to end the call on my sister, but she begged me: “Please, Celine. I’m begging you. If you don’t help me out, then we are no longer sisters.” “Clara!” I was tongue-tied. This was her usual threat. “I don’t think I can do this,” I said, and she threatened—already sobbing over the phone—“Then do not call me again.” The call ended, and I looked at my parents’ worried faces, most especially my father’s, which was filled with dread. “Celine, you have to stand in for Clara. If the Augustus family find out that your sister is missing on her wedding day, then we are doomed,” my father begged me. He even went as far as kneeling down. I guessed this was the price I had to pay for being born a twin. My twin sister had used me for most of her silly business and sent me to cover up for her with threats of disowning me. Now it was her wedding. “Fine. I’ll try to do this. But I hope Jace Augustus doesn’t find out. If he does, I won’t go down alone,” I warned my parents, and they shivered. “No one will know. You’ll learn to smile and act like Clara until she’s back. Besides, this isn’t your first time taking her place,” my mother said, making me sigh heavily. “Fine. I’ll give it a try. You guys should excuse me. Let me get some sleep. This is past midnight,” I told my parents. They smiled and wished me good night before leaving my door. I shut the door and muttered, “I hope I can do this.” Later, I went to my bed to sleep, but dread filled my heart.